It was an all-too-familiar tale for Chelsea as they were beaten 1-0 by Southampton at Stamford Bridge on Saturday afternoon.
Possession, chances, hope, but nothing to show for their performance. A free-kick from James Ward-Prowse towards the end of the first half was enough for the struggling Saints to pick up a shock three points at a stunned and then furious Stamford Bridge.
"I thought the response in the second half was good and I thought we deserved a goal," Graham Potter told reporters after the full-time whistle. "We created enough chances to score. But when you don't, then obviously it's difficult to win matches."
Chelsea had 17 attempts, with just five of them on target on Saturday afternoon, but the Blues were unable to find a way past Gavin Bazunu. Instead it was the Saints who took the points at the Bridge in something that Chelsea have almost become used to this season.
The Blues are unable to find a way past a low-block, which is a tactic the majority of teams in the league use when they come to west London to face them. Southampton were the latest to do that and to be fair to caretaker manager Ruben Selles, his game-plan worked perfectly.
Look at the difference in the two teams' heatmaps. Southampton spent most of their time on the edge of their own box trying to stop the onslaught of Chelsea attacks in the second period. The more the game went on, the deeper the Saints defence stood and the more difficult it became for Chelsea to find any space between the lines.
It's nothing new to the Blues, it's happened for years at Stamford Bridge but in the past they have been unable to find a successful route through. It happens to every top team in the Premier League. However, the likes of Manchester City and Arsenal – this season, anyway – have been able to break the opposition down.
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